So first about involving mental ray here. In this tutorial has no one specific map that explicitly require the use of MR. Here used only standard procedurals maps, and why was all this MR rendering pain?

Judging by the title, this one is tutorial only for Max 2010. It's also applicable in Max 2009 because here was used only one map that is a new feature in Max 2009 - namely "Color Balance". If you replace that part with a different technique, it would be entirely consistent with Max 2008, even Max 9.

The last line of author is totally lame and unprofessional advice. As the final result depends on the size of the mesh on which we apply the material, author proposes to reset and redefinite each parameter of each map to lower or heighter value, instead just to aplly UVW !!!

Well, my aim is not to offend people. What I first thought is was so the author of this tutorial has a year or less experience in 3ds Max and he just wants to be popular, but after I read the biography (CV) of Alessandro Cangelosi, I was shocked. In his "software experience", he say: Mental Ray, FinalRender, VRay, Brazil R/S - advanced (7 years), 3ds max - advanced + script + most of the major plug-ins (15 years), ... and in him "work experience": CG instructor (2008-2009), Custom Shaders TD (2009). Wow! LoL! ... Are these professionals that we need to pay and which we should learn? Hey, do not judge me if you do not understand what I say. All my life I saw people with magic knowledge, skills and talent, which are unemployed. Secondly, lamers where no end, but they have a job, some of them work for prestigious companies. I continue to wonder what is wrong with this world! Would you pay a someone if he have not done a good job? Or I missed something?